Prosecutor: Cash, Loyalty Fueled Ring

In Closing Arguments, Members Of A Suspected Drug Ring Are Portrayed As Devoted To Their Leader.

April 17, 1997|By Purvette A. Bryant of The Sentinel Staff

ORLANDO — Money was the momentum behind a Volusia-based drug ring that smuggled loads of marijuana and cocaine in vans, in airplanes and by express mail, a federal prosecutor said Wednesday.

The common thread that bound ring members to their leader, Juan Miguel Diez, and his thriving drug kingdom was camaraderie and dedication, Assistant U.S. Attorney Rick Jancha said in closing arguments.

The members made so much money, they didn't know what to do with it, Jancha said.

''They have to pay (people), but the main person they pay is Diez,'' Jancha said. ''Everyone in the organization not only was moving drugs, but (was) trying to decide how to move money. They had so much money they were having problems moving it without it being detected.''

Diez, 28, of Deltona, and five associates face 10 years to life in prison if convicted of federal drug conspiracy charges.

Closing arguments continue at 9 a.m. today before U.S. District Judge Patricia Fawsett in Orlando.

Since 1992, members of the ring smuggled marijuana between Mexico, Florida, Texas and Puerto Rico and imported cocaine from the island, court records show.

Fierce drug competition in west Volusia prompted Diez and his workers to seek ''a better and cheaper way'' to pump drugs into the county, Jancha said. So they expanded and moved their main operation from Volusia to Texas in 1992 and 1993, he said.

The move gave more power to Angel Medina, Diez's partner, Jancha said. Medina, who police say was murdered in 1994 at Diez's command, paid an airport security guard $100 a pound to pass their drugs through security scanners in Texas.

''Once you got drugs on that plane, it could go anywhere around the continental U.S.,'' Jancha said. ''They now had the ability to get more marijuana around the country.''

When they pushed more drugs across the border than they could handle, they rented houses in McAllen, Texas, and stored their drugs for packaging and distribution, Jancha said.

Beauchamp and Pierce transported drugs, while Ridgeway, Wert and Harris-McLane worked closely with Diez to keep business in Volusia flowing smoothly, Jancha said.

The operation worked fine until Medina became hooked on cocaine and lost drugs carelessly, the prosecutor said.

The final straw was when Medina asked ring member Benito ''Benny'' Figueroa to help him create his own business and haul cocaine loads to New York, Jancha said. Figueroa was more loyal to Diez and told his leader, who said he'd ''take care of Angel,'' Jancha said.

Medina was shot to death Oct. 11, 1994, in Lake County in the Ocala National Forest. Figueroa, who testified against Diez last week, said Diez later said he, Ridgeway and another man took care of Medina, Jancha said.

The drug ring continued and expanded operations from Mexico to Miami by using baggage handlers to intercept drug luggage before they hit scanners, Jancha said.

Harris-McLane knew her sons, Geoffrey and Ron Ridgeway, were involved in the drug ring, Jancha said.

''Yes, they needed Linda McLane to pass messages to people, store drugs in her home and do what's necessary to facilitate the (drug) moves,'' Jancha said.

In closing arguments, Diez's attorney, Robert Wesley of Orlando, showed the jury two aspirins. He told them one aspirin is ''more drugs than the government has put in the hands of Juan Miguel Diez.''

''There are no drugs attributed to Diez,'' Wesley said. ''In west Volusia, hundreds of people make their living off drug importation.''

Wire-tapped tapes of Diez talking with individuals about drugs is just talk, Wesley said.

''Drug talk doesn't make one a drug dealer or conspirator,'' Wesley said. ''Talking about it is not an overt act.''

Geoffrey Ridgeway's attorney, Luis Davila, of Kissimmee, told jurors in his closing arguments that prosecutors are trying to depict Ridgeway as a conspirator with no evidence.

''What evidence do they have against Geoff?'' Davila asked. ''In those 500 tapes (played in court) you never hear him except on one occasion. Did you ever hear Geofftalk about (drug) amounts or quantities?''

Wert's attorney, Charles Handlin of Orlando, said the 11 witnesses who testified about Wert's drug involvement did so to gain a reduced sentence.

Pierce's attorney, John E. Fernandez of Tampa, said his client may have been involved with drug purchases but wasn't involved in a drug ring.

''Anyone can go to Diez and buy drugs from him, but that doesn't mean he's conspiring to sell drugs,'' Fernandez said.